Chapter 12

... A wave of chills swept across from the opposite side, and Li Chenjing's brows and eyes flickered slightly.

"Come, come, come, Little Jing, sit by My side. You have done so much for Me, and I want to properly reward you."

Gold-threaded Sleeve fluttered before Li Chenjing's eyes, giving him a headache. "Save your trouble, your subject is just fine standing here."

"This time I still didn't promote you from Dongxu Mansion into the palace; you aren't secretly blaming Me in your heart, are you?" Seeing that he refused to draw near, the Emperor was not angry at all, his smile as radiant as a flower.

... "Not really."

"I knew Little Jing wasn't that petty. You understand Me; you and I grew up together as childhood sweethearts. Originally, Little Jing should have long since been promoted into the palace to accompany My side, but this Dongxu Mansion is My heart's blood and bargaining chip after all. How could I rest easy handing the position of Grand Secretary over to anyone else? In My heart, I trust only you, Little Jing, alone."

... This fellow's nonsense was growing by the exact moment.

"But speaking of which... are you that satisfied with that Zhu Family Young Master? Did you really have to be so impatient in the examination hall to make that person your own? You and I can also be considered childhood sweethearts, right? How is it that I have never seen you take an interest in men?"

"Is it fun to send people to spy on me?" He had known the Emperor wasn't that simple. With new Academy Students entering the mansion, an event of such magnitude, given the Emperor's suspicious nature, how could he possibly have handed full autonomy over to him?

The gold-threaded sleeves stroked the favorite imperial concubine in his arms. Little Jing truly knew that he had dispatched outsiders to monitor his every move. "Not bad. I just didn't expect Little Jing to pull off such a desperate stunt to test Me, making love to a little scholar. If I had indeed sent people to watch you, I certainly wouldn't have missed the chance to mock you, and I definitely would have interrogated you about it. Is that what you thought?"

"Your subject merely wished to set your mind at ease."

"At ease? At ease that you won't snatch women away from Me? Or at ease that you've lost interest in women entirely from this day forth? I must thank Little Jing for his painstaking efforts." He was merely acting a part for him to see; why did he have to play it on such a massive scale? It had caused him to be startled for a good moment upon hearing his scout's report—his impeccably stern Grand Secretary Li had actually made love to a young scholar just stepping out into officialdom?

Hah... hahaha, was this a season suited for mating? No wonder even the little female cat he kept had forgotten her modesty and stolen back a wild breed from some unknown tomcat right under his very eyelids.

Guarding three thousand beauties of the inner palace did not guarantee a good night's sleep every night.

"Since Grand Secretary Li has worked so hard recruiting for Dongxu Mansion and holds Me so deeply in his heart, I shall reward you."

...

"Grand Secretary Li of the Six Ministries of Dongxu Mansion, hear My decree: considering your toil and exertion in selecting talents and taking in worthies for Me, I specially bestow upon you one exclusive study attendant. That little scholar from the Zhu household—you like him very much, do you not? From this day on, your daily life and resting quarters within Dongxu Mansion shall all be tended to by him. What do you think?"

...

"Since it is a spiritual communion with Me alone, allow Me to nag one more word." The gold-threaded sleeves abruptly withdrew their playful expression, shifting into imperial work mode. He sat upright, head held high and looking down with arrogance. "Do not forget the purpose for which I established this Six Ministries Student Council, and furthermore... you are My person."

Author has something to say:

=.= Seeing the sea of lamentation in the comment section, hahahaha, this piece is indeed a story that a certain Sakura has dragged out for an extraordinarily long time~~ QAQ But considering that I still haven't abandoned the pit and am conscientiously typing away, everyone please accompany a certain Sakura in finishing it. Because the framework of this piece is truly super huge—it's the largest framework I've ever typed in my life QAQ Therefore...

Anyway, companionship is also a kind of happiness~~ QAQ Seeing you little goblins who haven't given up yet, I just want to say: thankfully, I haven't given up either!!

There's another update tonight at eight. Speeding up the moving process, striving to let everyone see Chapter 2 earlier!

Chapter 13: Chapter 12

"If I say to someone, 'You are my person,' what does that mean?"

"You love her. Consultation fee: 50 wen."

The tip of the writing brush tapped the small ceramic bowl on the table. Zhu Bafu did not even raise her head, continuing to bend over the desk and write furiously.

"What if he is a man? I am one, too."

...

Zhu Bafu paused, her brows furrowed, and slowly raised her head. She saw a young master in lavish robes draped in a golden cloak, holding a lazy, punchable cat in his arms, lowering his gaze to smile faintly at her. Seeing her raise her head in a daze, his thin lips curved gently. "We haven't seen each other in many days. Has the Pig Kid missed me?"

"Piao... Young Master Piao!" Wasn't this precisely the wealthy young master who had led her into the Spring Breeze Brothel to see the top courtesan that day!

"Young Master Piao?" His dark eyes blinked.

"No, I mean, men being romantic and all is great, just great..."

"How do you know my surname is Piao?" He tilted his head with a calm smile.

... Piao, Young Master Piao? He actually did have the surname Piao? He won!

At a roadside tea stall, Zhu Bafu bustled about arranging chairs so Young Master Piao could sit down.

The oily table was left uncleaned, a few used tea bowls scattered loosely across it, and the tabletop still shimmered with iridescent colors. Young Master Piao awkwardly twitched his brow, while the cold and haughty cat in his arms bristled its fur, meowing in utter disgust at its master to show its protest—as refined as she was, even a place to relieve oneself might not be as low-grade as this, so how could she condescend to sit here?

Zhu Bafu did not understand cat expressions or cat language. She hospitably swept her sleeve across the tabletop and hailed Young Master Piao as if she were in her own home, "Please sit. Little Er, bring a pot of tea!"

"Coming right up! The cheapest tea dregs, right?" Little Er held a tea bowl in his hands, clacking the teacups down haphazardly onto the table with a rattle. Tipping the teapot, half of the pale yellow tea water flowed into the tea bowl while the other half splashed onto the table, with a few droplets even splattering onto the cat's soft fur.

"Meow meow meow meow..."

"Shh. Be good, don't make a fuss."

"Eh? Young Master Piao, is your little cat kitten thirsty too? Since I've already decided to treat you to tea, we won't mind one extra bowl. Little Er, bring another bowl!"

Ranking List

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Historical Romance

Woman Dressed as a Man